Nothing that a simple sword can't fix!

Yesterday, Alex and I didn't see eye to eye on pretty much everything.  He wanted to be held everywhere and I wanted him to crawl; he wanted to pull everything out of my cupboards and I wanted to get the dishes done; he wanted to SCREAM at me until he got what he wanted and I wanted silence.  This resulted in a not very happy mom and kid!  Finally, Mike got home and offered to take him "shopping" to just get him out of the house and away from me.

After several hours of being gone, in walks Mike and Alex with big grins on both their faces while Alex holds his new sword proudly!  Alex was so sweet the rest of the night.

One of my sad attempts to try and distract him from tearing apart my kitchen.  It worked for about ten minutes.

I guess if nothing else food is always a pleaser.  Thank goodness for crackers!

Thanksgiving Weekend

This Thanksgiving my parents came to us for the Thanksgiving. It was fun being the one hosting Thanksgiving and nice not having to travel.  This picture was me attempting to get some First Thanksgiving pictures taken but Alex wanted to be up close and personal with the camera and me.

Alex was attempting to help me with the dishes before dinner.  He is such a good helper.  He gets the entire bottom shelf of dishes out and puts them on the floor for me.  Just where I want my clean dishes!

Grandma and Grandpa have arrived!  Alex figured out pretty quickly that Grandma will always pick him him.  If I was ever holding him and I walked by Grandma he would reach for her.  It was a nice holiday for me!!

On Black Friday, after a morning of shopping for me, my mom and I relaxed the rest of the day.  That night the guys (Mike, my dad, and two of my brothers) went to a very cold and wet BSU game.  Friday night Alex, my mom, my nephew, Tyler, my sister-in-law, Janelle and her daughter Allie and I to Chinese.  Three kids at a restaurant is a lot of work!

Allie and Alex making a mess.  You should have seen the floor when they were done.

Saturday we went over to my brother's house for a football party.  It was really fun to see the three kids interact with one another. There was a lot of toy taking and pushing and crying.

It was a fun weekend and worth all the hassle!

ZZZzzzZZZzzz

 I think he is just practicing for Thanksgiving.

hehe...I love when kids fall asleep in their high chair.  He just wined for a minute and then the next thing I heard was snoring.

Mom & Grandma Weekend

This past weekend I was able to go meet my mom in Boise for my cousin's wedding.  We only stayed one night but it was so much fun to have some one-on-one time with my mom and I know Alex loved being with his Grandma.  We ate a lot of good food (and some bad,) we went shopping, and we visited with my mom's family.  Also, Alex behaved like a perfect angel the entire time we were there.  He seems to do that whenever Grandma is around.

I took a bunch of pictures but there aren't two with them both looking at me.  Alex couldn't stop looking at everything around him and Grandma couldn't stop looking at Alex!

One of Alex's favorite things (besides Grandma) was riding on the luggage carts at the hotel.  He thought it was so much fun to be pushed around.

He wouldn't look at me whenever he saw the camera.  I hate it when they learn not to look at the camera!

My mom and I decided that we will have to do this again in the Spring.  It was so much fun and it was so hard to leave when the weekend was up.

Why did the chicken cross the road?

To go trick-or-treating of course!

If you would like to know more about how I made this costume go to my craft blog at: sewincrediblycrafty.blogspot.com

We took this picture when he was trying it on before I made the thing that went around his neck and made it so the feathers wouldn't touch his face.  You can also see this picture on Make It and Love It on her virtual costume parade.

Happy Halloween!

Idaho Grown

The other day my sister in law brought me a big bucket of potatoes and Alex thought it was the best toy in the world.  The first day he just pulled himself up and would pull out a few potatoes and drop them on the ground. (Pulling himself up is one of his favorite past times. If he can't pull himself up  on it, it isn't worth playing with.)

The second day he discovered dirt for the first time.  And LOVED it!

He didn't like the potato as much after I had washed the dirt off of it.

I have my own "Grown in Idaho" Potato Boy!

Alex 9 Months and counting

Over the past month it has been so much fun to see all the different things Alex has learned and enjoys doing.  One of his favorite things to eat is crackers, especially graham crackers.  The picture above is when we first started to give them to him so he got them everywhere.  I would usually just stick him in the tub several times a day then try to get the mess off.

It was so nice when he learned how to use his pincer grip.  I would load up his tray with several different types of food and he would be occupied for awhile.  This allowed me to get some much needed internet time!

Over the past month Alex has mastered the army crawl and will frequently get up on his hands and knees and take a step.  He has discovered he likes to crawl into things such as tables and chairs.  I often find him stuck and crying through out the house.

His newest development is that he can pull himself up.  There is a whole new level of stuff he can now get at and destroy.  His favorite is the dishwasher.  So many fun things right at his fingertips.  He gets giddy when he crawls into the kitchen and finds the dishwasher lid down.

The other day I caught him in the act of making a mess.  From the look on his face you can tell he knew he wasn't supposed to be there.  He had crawled under my craft table and gotten into a bunch of folders and paper work I had stashed.

He loves that he can now reach more toys on the high shelves So much for keeping that area organized any more.

His car seat is now on the highest setting possible. I still can't believe how small he used to be.  My little boy is growing up!

100th Post!!

Since I've reached my 100th post I decided to share 100 random things about myself.  Have fun reading and continue to come to the Christensen's blog to read about our family in future posts.

1. I have now been married to my husband for 4 years and it feels like I meet him yesterday but I've already known him forever.
2. My first baby, Alex, was born on January 1, 2009.  Coolest birthday ever!
3. Alex turned 9 months.
4. I'm 23 now which is weird because that is how hold my husband was when I met him, which at the time felt OLD!
5. I could easily eat an entire can of olives and I'll admit that sometimes I do.
6. I have never liked mushrooms and now that I'm an adult I still don't!  So HA all of you who said you will like them when you got older.
7. Hi my name is Keri and I'm an internet addict.
8. I wish I would have learned the piano when I was younger.
9. I had a C-section with Alex after being in labor for 20 hours.  The C-section was easier then the 20 hours!
10. I have to sing the ABC song or parts of it in my head if I am ever alphabetizing something.
11. I check my face book account and email SEVERAL times a day...meaning 5+.
12. I don't understand people who can eat a slice or even two slices of pizza and say that they are full. Pizza is too good to not eat a lot of!
13. I love to be by myself.  I want to do my own thing my own way.  I'm fine with having the entire house to myself for hours.
14. I sometimes use my fingers to count...I blame the calculator!
15. I have an irrational fear of spiders.  I get chills every time I picture one in my head.  EWWW!
16. I just discovered this year my love of yard sales.
17. I don't understand some of the stuff people think they can sell at yard sales that you shouldn't even donate.  THROW IT AWAY! Aren't you embarrassed?
18. LOVES Costco cake!  I eat and eat and eat it and I get sick but then once the cake is gone I crave it until the next year.
19. I used to scrapbook all the time but for some reason I don't do it much anymore. 
20. I've changed my diet to not include most sugars and fats and I've been on it for 7 months.  Maybe that is why I crave Costco cake all the time.
21. Loves to have company or go to people's houses because my diet is semi void (semi meaning I can't go crazy on the sweets but one is okay now and again.)
22. Some of my favorite shows are: FRIENDS, Biggest Loser, Dancing with the Stars, Reba, Grey's Anatomy, Gilmore Girls, Amazing Race, Jon and Kate plus eight, 18 and counting (or is it 19) and The Bachelor. 
23. I wish some of my favorite shows would clean themselves up a little!
24. I'm going to name our first girl Rebecca but we haven't picked a middle name yet. Maybe I'll let Mike do that...maybe.
25. My favorite food choices have moved from Italian to Chinese, and is now Mexican.  Lets face it, I just like all food!
26. I love to be organized and have everything in its place but I don't ever take the time to do it.  Maybe I'm not that organized of a person.
27. I have developed a love of quilting.  I'm not that good at it, I mess up all the time, I curse my machine constantly but I still love doing it.
28. I was put on bed rest for three weeks at the end of my pregnancy. 
29. My all time favorite store is Walmart.  I don't know what I would do without it.  
30. WinCo is my favorite for food.  
31. I really enjoy cooking.  Especially when I come up with some new recipes or if I can make current recipes healthy.  
32. I had to live without a dishwasher for 2 years and a garbage disposal the 2 years before that.  I never want to live without either of them EVER AGAIN!
33. I am usually in a good mood when my house is clean.  When it is messy....WATCH OUT!
34. I hate being really hot.....HATE IT!  It makes me so short with everyone and everything around me.  (I'm not such a fan of being really cold either but at least it doesn't change my personality.)
35. I absolutely love to read.  If I could pick one past time that I couldn't do without that would defiantly be it.
36. I put my son in a big box while I'm typing this up and he is loving it!  I think I might make it my Alex internet box.  
37. Can't ever go to the grocery store and just buy one thing.  It is IMPOSSIBLE!
38. I love movies.  I'll see a movie just because I haven't seen it not because it looks like it will be a good one.
39. Love the invention of Redbox and dollar theaters.
40. After marrying Mike, I took 6 semesters straight of classes so I could be finished when he was.  Boy was I ready to graduate when I was done!
41. I want to someday have a theater room in my house.  With couch theater seating and a projector.  
42. I loves free samples.  I sign up for free samples all the time and get most of them.  It is like individually packaged presents!
43. I am so excited for the cooler weather because that means that Autumn is here!  I love Autumn because all the cool holidays are coming up!
44. I had baby bunnies that turned out to be one female and one male when they got older which made more baby bunnies.  Not such a good idea!
45. I have dreams that my husband is cheating on me sometimes.  I wake up in a sour mood every time.  
46. I bite my finger nails and can't figure out a way to stop.  
47. I can't eat anything with the Grape flavoring.  I guess too much grape flavored Tylenol when I was a kid.
48. I absolutely love Root Beer.  It is SOOOO good! Except today I had diet Shasta...ewww!  
49. When I was in high school I was late for school and didn't take the time to scrape my windows and ended up hitting a police officers mail box and I DROVE AWAY!   Not my best moment.
50. I can't believe I'm only half way down with this list!
51. Hates getting ready in the mornings or any other part of the day especially if I know I'm not going anywhere.
52. Is usually ready to move after a few years of living some where.  
53. I had braces for 2.5 years in high school and most likely will have kids that need them too.  
54. I had a really bad 4-wheeler accident the same week we got our first 4-wheeler and my right hand will never be the same.  
55. I now have a artificial knuckle, a titanium plate, 7 screws, and some pretty nasty  looking scares on my right hand.
56. I am right handed.
57. One time I read Mike's journal and discovered to never EVER do that again. Not because Mike got mad but from the stuff I read.
58. I LOVE hot showers when it is cold and then I sit in my bathrobe to dry off while I read a book.  
59. Had the third grandchild on both sides of our family.
60. My all time favorite spice is Cinnamon and I always use spell check when I write it.
61. I have all 10 seasons of Friends and I will NEVER EVER EVER sell them.  
62. I watch all 10 seasons of Friends at least once a year, sometimes twice.
63. I never learned how to swim.  I can keep myself above the water I just never had swimming lessons.
64. We lived in a trailer for the first 2 years we were married and we kept the heater at 55 (because that was as low as it would go.)   It was pretty cold.
65. I love to have my life on a schedule but I have a son who could care less!
66. I've never been much of a fan of pancakes and even less of a fan of waffles.  Give me eggs, sausage, and hash browns!
67. I pretty much dislike ALL bugs.  Spiders are definitely my nemesis but every other bug is a close second.  
68. I used to hold my pencil the same way you hold a fork until my accident with my right hand and now I'm even weirder with how I hold it. 
69. I don't have any sisters; just three brothers.  
70. My husband is 5.5 years older then me.  Mike is older then my oldest brother.
71. I used to never laugh out loud at movies.  I'm not sure why, because I thought things were funny but I just wouldn't laugh out loud.  
72. I married a guy who laughs a lot so I am now curried of my not laughing out loud disease.
73. I didn't get a cavity until I was 18.  I wish I could say that was because I was excellent at taking care of my teeth.
74. I went to the biggest mall in the Americas (it was in Canada) when I was younger.  It was pretty cool except it was hard to shop because it wasn't in dollars.  I never knew if I was ACTUALLY getting a good deal or not.
75. When my husband and I were dating I went to his parents house during Christmas break.  We went the entire way from Rexburg to Tuscan, AZ and back on a BUS!  It was the longest trip of my life.  We met the weirdest people EVER!  Including a guy who had been kicked out of Salt Lake City by the Police and sent on a bus.  He had blood all over his shirt still.  
76. I was diagnosed with insulin resistance and was almost a diabetic a year before I got pregnant.  After a year of medication and changing my diet I came back healthy during my pregnancy.
77. I love to stay up late and then sleep in BUT I'm starting to hate when I sleep past 9:30.  I feel like I've already wasted my day.
78. I really dislike anything that I classify as flavored sugar water: Koolaid, Popsicles, otter pops, etc.
79. I have the hardest time getting myself to drink liquid especially water.  I like water I just don't want to drink nearly as much as I need too.  When I was pregnant with Alex I had some complications because of this issue of mine.
80. I really enjoy hot dogs.  I don't like them straight but in a bun with yummy relish, mayo and ketchup. MMMM or with Mac and Cheese!
81. I am not a cuddlier.  I like my side of the bed and I expect Mike to stay on his half. He doesn't always think so!
82. My favorite color is blue or red (depending on what it is for) but I would rather not have to choose one color because I like the entire rainbow.  
83. I feel like I could go Supernanny on some parents.  Not because I am SOOO experienced but I do have a few good suggestions for parents.  Unfortunately, I won't do it unless they ask.
84. I got lice 2 times when I was younger.  NOT COOL!
85. I have a really hard time keeping a grocery budget.  I don't know why but I like to keep my cupboards really stocked.  
86. As I get older I'm having a harder and harder time staying awake for movies.  Once I get in a horizontal position it takes a lot for me to stay awake.
87. I actually like doing math, particularly Algebra.  I also enjoy Chemistry because you use mostly algebra to do it.
88. I really enjoy musicals especially pretty much all Disney movies, Phantom of the Opera, Hairspray, and Moulin Rouge.  
89. I paint my toenails all the time because it makes me feel pretty but I never paint my finger nails.
90. When I was younger I got my two older brother's spanked for something I did.  When my dad found out it was actually me who did it I also got spanked but my brothers will never let me forget what I did.
91. One time when my mom wouldn't let me go with her to the store I ripped all of the leaves off of her beautiful inside plant.  I was only 2.
92. I met my husband in the first two weeks I was up at school.  We started dating after a month of knowing one another.  We dated for 8 months and were engaged for 4 months.  We were married on August 12, 2005.
93. Loves to see the season's change.  I love the crisp air after the long summer or the first snow or when the sun finally comes out after the winter.  I would hate to live in a place that doesn't have seasons.
94. I always put my crayons and markers in a rainbow.  It just makes them looks so pretty!
95. I am a pretty fast typer but I still have never learned the 10 key.  
96. I am horrible at proof reading.  If I don't read it out loud I miss mistakes all over the place.  Most likely this thing will be filled with misspelled words and mixed up sentences.
97. I love making myself lists when I have a lot to do.  Actually, I don't like the list I like crossing the stuff off of my list.
98. I like to make my sauces sweet.  So my spaghetti sauce, pizza sauce, chili, sauces for meats, etc.
99. I think that reading parenting books is stressful.  I get excited with what they are telling me to do but I can't get it to work and then I just get stressed out that I'm a horrible parent.  I just try not to read them anymore or I just read parts.  
100. It has taken me 5 days to complete this list....aaaaa....I'm done!

Sarah's Visit

Mike's sister, Sarah, came up for a visit and wanted to go see Shoshone Falls.  We wanted to show her the beautiful waterfall but when we got down there this is what we saw......

NOTHING!  There was a little water coming down but this was a huge disappointment to see nothing!  I've never seen it this bare and I've gone in November before!

Alex and Mike very disappointed.  They have such concerned looks on their faces.

Mike, Alex, and Sarah

Looking out towards the canyon.  It was such a beautiful day.

Alex wasn't that happy about the people on the other side of Sarah.  As long as those people were in his sights he wouldn't smile.

Right before you reach the bottom there is an Elk farm.  On the way down this elk was standing up and it was so cool to see him that close.  We decided to snap his picture when we went back up.

We took Sarah by the Twin Falls Temple.  Since it was Sunday the gates were closed but we admired it from afar.

We then headed to the Prime Bridge.

Sarah wanted to climb up and see if she could feel the cars moving from underneath the bridge.

I tried and tried to get Alex to smile but he wasn't in the mood I guess.

I think he was up to something.

Part of seeing the Prime Bridge is going on the walkway.  On one side there is a gold course down in the canyon which provides an excellent view from the bridge.

When you go into the center of the bridge it starts to bounce.  Especially when big trucks come across.

We had a blast with Sarah and can't wait for her to come up and visit us again!